This summer, hopes were high that Ukraine could use western weapons to claim back big cities, liberate hundreds of miles of territory and maybe even cut off Russian forces inside the country. That has not happened.
Instead the war’s progress has slowed to an agonising pace. Drones mean both sides have impressive intelligence of what their enemies are doing and breakthroughs are hard to come by. And the world’s attention being on the Middle East is a dangerous situation for Ukraine – will it lose the financial support of its western backers, such as the US?
The possible re-election of Donald Trump, who is thought to be even less keen on financing Ukrainian efforts, is looming. But, Luke Harding tells Michael Safi, morale is still surprisingly high in Ukraine. And counting them out now would be a mistake.
Photograph: Kateryna Klochko/EPA
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